In general, in a magnetic recording and reproducing apparatus using a magnetic tape, the magnetic tape has magnetic powder coated on a recording face thereof tending to be stripped out thereof due to friction of the magnetic tape with a magnetic head on recording and reproducing. The magnetic powder stripped in this manner prevents the good recording and reproducing of the apparatus because the magnetic powder is transferred to a gap of the magnetic head while the magnetic tape having the stripped magnetic powder attached to the recording face is running.
Thus, there has been proposed magnetic tape cleaners for removing the stripped magnetic powder on the recording face of the magnetic tape.
One of the conventional magnetic tape cleaners is illustrated in FIG. 14. The magnetic tape cleaner comprises a tape scraper 1 securely mounted by screws 2 and 2' on a base 3 having a magnetic head, not shown, provided thereon. The tape scraper 1 comprises a C-shaped scraper body 4 having a width larger than a width of a magnetic tape 9 and disposed so that an opening 4a faces a tape running path. Scraper blades 5 and 5' for scraping magnetic powder 6 out of the recording face of the magnetic tape 9 are secured to recesses 4b and 4c of side walls of the scraper body 4. The conventional tape cleaner comprises suction means 7 such as a vacuum pump which is connected to the space within the scraper body 4 through a hose 8 which extends through the rear wall of the scraper body 4.
In the conventional magnetic tape cleaner, while the magnetic tape 9 is running in a direction indicated by an arrow A of FIG. 14, the magnetic powder 6 on the recording face of the magnetic tape 9 is scraped by the scraper blade 5' positioned on a downstream side of the tape running path and is floating within the space of the scraper body 4. The suction means 7 attracts the floating magnetic powder through an inlet 8a of the hose 8. While the magnetic tape 9 is running in a direction indicated by an arrow B of FIG. 14, after the scraper blade 5 on the downstream side of the tape running path scrapes the magnetic powder 6 out of the recording face of the magnetic tape 9, it is sucked by the suction means 7 in a similar manner.
Such a conventional magnetic tape cleaner is provided with the suction means 7, such as a vacuum pump, for sucking the magnetic powder scraped by the tape scraper 1 and, therefore, the scraped magnetic powder is prevented from being again attached to the recording face of the magnetic tape 9. However, since the suction means 7 is required in order to remove the magnetic powder 6 out of the scraper, the magnetic instrument having such a magnetic tape cleaner provided therein is disadvantageously large-sized. In addition thereto, the instrument is expensive to manufacture because the suction means is costly.